In India, a man has just been sentenced to prison for acts that date back more than forty years. He had usurped the identity of a teenager, who disappeared in 1977, from a wealthy land family. The police eventually unmasked him. Narrative.
a court in the event that has just condemned a man for facts which go back to the beginning of the 1980s. He is accused of having posed as the son of a wealthy landowner, who disappeared in 1977. Forty-one years following the facts, he was sentenced to seven years in prison, reports the media Ulyces .
Disappearance then return
In February 1977, Kanhaiya Singh, the only son of a wealthy and influential landowner in the state of Bihar (northeast India), disappeared on his way home from school. His family lodged a complaint with the police but the search remained fruitless, explains the BBC who conducted the investigation into this disappearance. The father, desperate, sinks into depression. Until the day when it is announced to him that his son is alive, relates the article of the British radio-television.
We are four years following the disappearance of the teenager. He would be in a nearby village, 15 kilometers away, and beg for food. According to locals, he claims to be “the son of an eminent person” from the neighboring village. When the rumor reaches the ears of Kameshwar Singh, hope is reborn.
Identity theft
The old man goes to the village in question and is sure to have his son in front of him. His friends who accompany him are affirmative: it is indeed Kanhaiya Singh. His reaction : “My eyes are failing and I can’t see it properly, is it recorded in the police archives that the BBC has procured. If you say he’s my son, I’ll keep him. »
Back in the village, his wife immediately understands that it is not her son. A complaint is filed by the family for identity theft because the mother is formal. His son, Kanhaiya, had a cut on the left side of his headshe explains to the police. He also did not recognize a teacher from his school. » The man was arrested and spent a month in prison before being released on bail.
Upon his release from prison, the man continues to pretend that he is the missing son and fabricates a false identity. This allows him to go to university and get married. During the four decades, the impostor even takes the opportunity to sell parts of the property of the wealthy landowner, who has died in the meantime.
He always refused a DNA test which might have proved that he was indeed the brother of Kameshwar Singh’s daughter. This intrigued the police who ended up discovering the pot of roses. Especially since the impostor tried to change his identity with a false death certificate. The investigation revealed that the usurper was known by an identity very common in India.
According to BBC, this case would be a reflection of the slowness of the judicial system. Some 50 million cases are said to be pending in the courts and more than 180,000 of them have been so for more than 30 years. Hence this conviction of the impostor to prison, more than forty years following the start of the facts.
